Combibos Coffee

I finally found a coffee shop I can enjoy going to on weekends and not pay $6 for a drink! Not only that, but Combibos Coffee is also family run. I'll definitely be back... If only these places stayed open past 7 pm...

What's Up With Wojo This Coming Year?

I think the photo above is a great illustration of where I'm finding myself. I'm happy, but a bit worried... I'm at my desk, looking up -- am I looking for something? Maybe... Am I anxiously observing the massive amount of mathematical work looming over me? Definitely... I have a few expectations of myself and of the year to come, and I hope to document them here.

So what's up with me?

Obviously, School

Four major courses, case studies, exams, and weekly assignments. Yes, this is my life, and what a workload! I vacillate between being completely happy with the challenges and problems being presented, while also worrying that things will only get harder from here. Nonetheless, this is the main thing I'll be doing. Seriously, what did you expect?

Politics

I'm hoping to get more involved in Canadian politics. I think I've done a lot of the international political stuff through Five Minutes to Midnight (FMM) and the Canadian Commission for UNESCO, and there's a few ideas brewing now with regards to Canadian public policy and politics. Okay, there's actually something amazingly cool in the works, but I'm keeping it confidential until it's released. Just wait a few weeks!

I'm going to place FMM in this category as well, though it has a much broader mandate than Canadian public policy. There's a few projects we're working on, and while it's hard to balance my broader life with FMM, I'm happy to continue doing so.

Research and Business

The research projects I've been working on are still moving forward, though much more slowly. So's the business idea and prototype I've been building. In fact, I use the prototype a few times a week to quickly and easily catch up with the blogosphere that I so miss now that I'm not at IBM. There, you now have a hint at what I'm doing!

Breaking Down My Comfort Zone

I try to do this regularly, but more so this year than ever before... This will include more social events and formals, more adventures, travel, running, hiking, etc. It's a vague category, but a very important one. And it totally relates with the ones above.

So what do I think of this coming year? Well, I wrote the above in a Starbucks and then went for dinner, planning to post this when I returned home. At dinner I got a fortune cookie, with a wonderful message. The photo is below (click for a larger version):

... I think that says it all.

Matriculation

This past Saturday, I officially joined the University of Oxford. Unfortunately, I didn't take many photos, but am excited to get back the "official" photo that was taken.

Ironically, I'm writing about matriculation instead of working on the assignments I have due in the morning... So I'm off!

Oxford Graffiti

The back exit of the Mathematical Institute at Oxford provides one with a perfect view of some interesting graffiti. Simple, yet in some way, quite deep. Makes me smile every time.

New Phone

After 2.5 weeks away from my old phone, I finally have a new one! And yes, as promised, it's a bit of a camera phone. 3.2 megapixels... Though I really wanted a Blackberry, I couldn't justify spending over $600 on the Curve (my old one got wet!) or $800 on the Bold.

At least I can take photos! Finally, moblogging again! Though this time through Bluetooth.

Amazon Web Services for Research

It's been a while, but there's a new post at dis-order.net.

I'm hoping to get a cell phone with a camera soon, and when I do, I'll be posting photos on here regularly. Can't wait!

What's Up With Wojo? (Freshers' Week Edition)

I was talking with Emma, a fellow scholar from Canada tonight, and realized that I've been away from home for almost two weeks now. Long time to be away, and it's still the beginning... The idea of being in a new place and making new goals has been with me for a while, but I haven't thought much about goals, aspirations, or similar things, yet. Sure, I thought about how I should make some new goals, but that's as far as it's gone.

"Why is that?" you ask? Well, there's a number of reasons, and all of them have to do with the events of the last few weeks. This is what I've been up to.

Orientations

So far, I'm being inducted into everything from the University of Oxford to various clubs. There's lots of this, and a lot of it is ceremonial. I'm looking forward to getting to work, soon, rather than attending these events. They're nice, but work is also nice.

Socializing

Wine and cheese events, pubs, guest speakers, and afternoon tea. Welcome to Oxford, this is what daily life is like.

Research?

I'm still working on a number of papers, along with my business idea... I'm using the business' prototype to do my own blog reading, and am enjoying it quite a bit. We'll see where it goes!

Generally...

... there's a lack of time for everything. I hear that life gets much busier once courses start, and this scares me a bit. I'm sure I'll be fine -- at the least, I won't be giving up the project I'm running now!

At Oxford

I arrived at Oxford last Monday, and haven't been posting much because I wanted to take some photos and let those speak for themselves first. Simply put, Oxford is a beautiful place. It's old but warm, and the people working at the university are wonderful.

But I don't want to write too much in this post. So without further ado, here's where I live...

That's my apartment on the top floor. It's got two rooms -- a study and a bedroom -- so I'm quite happy with the setup.

When I exit my staircase, here's the path I take.

Trinity College itself is beautiful, though the grass is a bit dead this time of year. Here's the front yard.

And for good measure, here's Rhodes House (across the street from Trinity College).

The main entrance to Trinity College is actually on the side of the College... The entrance is almost in the centre of town, and surrounded by many gorgeous and terribly old buildings, like the Sheldonian Theatre, below.

And here's some more random shots of the street I'm on...



So there you have it! A very different place from New York or Toronto, but I think I could get used to it.